Eagle Butte Man Found Guilty By Jury Of Threatening Federal Official

PIERRE, (KCCR) — An Eagle Butte man has been sentenced on a federal charge of threatening a federal official. U-S Attorney Ron Parsons says a federal jury in Pierre convicted 68 year-old Joseph Lafferty on a charge of Threatening a Federal Official following a three-day trial that ended last week. Parsons says evidence at trial proved that Lafferty threatened to retrieve a firearm and kill a federal employee working for the Indian Health Service in Eagle Butte. Parsons says the verdict should send a clear message that similar threats of violence against public officials very seriously and that they will be swiftly prosecuted with the full force of the law. A presentence investigation will be performed prior to Lafferty’s sentencing on April 20th. Threatening a Federal Official carries a maximum penalty of six years in federal prison and or a 250-thousand dollar fine. Three years of supervised release could also be a part of any sentence that gets handed down. Lafferty remains on release until sentencing.